Owatonna’s Williamson Races to Eye-Popping Totals

Like a runaway freight train or a charging lion, sometimes its best just to get out of the way. And, whatever you do, don't poke the lion with a sharp stick. Northfield found out the danger in that during the recent section championship football game.

Owatonna senior running back, and Golden Gopher commit, Jason Williamson has amassed rushing totals rarely seen ever in the state of Minnesota. He had what's believed to be the second-best single-game total with his 477-yard effort in the playoff win over Northfield. The Minnesota State High School League website lists 576 yards by Derek Shoen of Granada/Huntley/East Chain as the record from 2016.

In Friday's win, Williamson came off for a play after a third-quarter carry. He took a shot while in the pileup after the run and was irritated by it. On his next carry, he went 63 yards for one of his six touchdowns on the game. He has 14 playoff touchdowns and 35 total TDs on the season.

Coach Jeff Williams talked about the third quarter incident on Saturday's radio show. He also said that the offensive line's continued maturity and experience gained from a season of working together has created some great running lanes for Williamson.

Owatonna's offensive line consists of senior Joe Edel, juniors Ethan Rohman, Zach Wiese, Carter DeBus and Isaiah Noeldner. The tight end is usually junior Carson DeKam. They will look continue their path-clearing blocking in Saturday's state quarterfinal game versus Chaska at 12 pm at TCO Performance Center in Eagan.

Williamson has 2,330 yards rushing this season, breaking his own single-season record. He is Owatonna's all-time leading rusher with 6,330. That number is the second-highest in state history according to the Minnesota Football Coaches Association website, which differs quite a bit from the high school league site in overall records. However, both sites indicate Tyler Evans of McLeod West is the career-record holder with either 7,503 or 7,363 yards.

Williamson is within reach of that record if he continues on the torrid pace he is on now.

Williams added after the win over Mayo to open the playoffs, "Boy, he's just magical once he's popped that first level. It seems like every time that he did get five yards it was 50 and a touchdown. He just is very, very special. Hopefully, we can appreciate what he's capable of doing here while we get the chance to see him because we're not going to see another one like this for an awfully long time, I'm afraid."